Compare Personal Loan Offers in Excel: EMI, Total Interest, Processing Fee and the Cheapest Loan

By Ravindra Bagale · Last updated: 17 October 2026

Download the template: compare-loan-offers-template.xlsx: example data with real formulas. Yellow cells are inputs you can type over; green cells hold formulas; blue rows are headers and totals. Replace the example data with your own and everything recalculates.

Made-up data: every name, amount, shop and date on this page is made up for practice. Cities are used only to make the examples feel real.

1. The example

Three made-up offers for ₹5,00,000:

Lender 2's low rate is eaten up by its 2.5% fee: it costs only ₹53 less than Lender 1. Lender 3 is cheapest by about ₹27,000, mainly because the loan is repaid in 4 years instead of 5, but its EMI is ₹2,176 higher. With a take-home income of ₹60,000, its EMI is 21.5% of income, inside Amir's own limit of 25%.

New to PMT? The home loan EMI page explains =PMT(rate/12, years*12, -loan) argument by argument.

2. Build it step by step

Step 1. Type the offers

1. In B4:D4 type the lender names.
2. In A5:A8 type Loan amount, Interest rate per year, Tenure (years), Processing fee % and fill B5:D8 from each sanction letter (yellow).
3. Select B7:D7 > Data > Data Validation > List: 1,2,3,4,5,6,7 (data validation).

Step 2. EMI with PMT

1. In B9 type =PMT(B6/12,B7*12,-B5): ₹10,746.95.
2. B6/12 is the monthly rate, B7*12 the number of EMIs and -B5 the loan (minus, so the EMI shows positive).
3. Copy B9 right to D9.

Step 3. Total paid and interest

1. In B10 type =B9*B7*12: ₹6,44,817 paid over 60 EMIs.
2. In B11 type =B10-B5: ₹1,44,817 interest.

Step 4. Fee and total cost

1. In B12 type =B5*B8: ₹5,000.
2. In B13 type =B11+B12: ₹1,49,817 total cost.
3. Copy B10:B13 right to column D.

Step 5. Find the cheapest

1. In B14 type =IF(B13=MIN($B$13:$D$13),"Cheapest","") and copy right. Only Lender 3 shows Cheapest.
2. Select B13:D13 > Conditional Formatting > New Rule > Use a formula: =B13=MIN($B$13:$D$13), green fill (formula rules).

Step 6. Can I afford the EMI?

1. In B16 type your take-home income (₹60,000) and in B17 your own EMI limit (25%).
2. In B18 type =B9/$B$16 and copy right: 17.9%, 17.7%, 21.5%.
3. In B19 type =IF(B18<=$B$17,"Yes","No") and add a red rule for No.

Step 7. Chart

1. Select B13:D13 > Insert > Column and set the categories to B4:D4 (column charts). The shortest bar is the cheapest loan.

3. Formulas used

Every formula above is written in the template, so you can click a cell and see it in the formula bar. All values on this page were recalculated in the file.

4. Common mistakes

1. Choosing by rate alone. Lender 2 has the lowest rate but almost the same cost as Lender 1 after its fee. Compare row 13.
2. Forgetting the fee. A 2.5% fee on ₹5,00,000 is ₹12,500, more than many people expect. Always add it.
3. Ignoring the tenure. A shorter loan costs less interest but has a bigger EMI. Check row 18 before you pick it.
4. Typing the yearly rate in PMT. =PMT(B6,B7,-B5) gives a yearly payment. Use B6/12 and B7*12 for monthly EMIs.
5. Leaving out other charges. Lenders usually add GST and sometimes other charges on the fee. Add them to row 12 if your sanction letter lists them.

5. More real examples

Example 1: Same tenure, fair comparison. Set all three tenures to 5 years in row 7. Now the gap in row 13 comes only from rate and fee.

Example 2: Car loan offers. The same sheet works for a car or two-wheeler loan: type the on-road loan amount and each dealer's rate and fee.

Example 3: Balance transfer check. Put your current loan's remaining amount and rate in column B and the new offer (with its fee) in column C.

Quick revision cards

Englishमराठीहिंदी

Quick revision

Each card shows formulas from this page, each with an example and its answer from the template. Scan the QR code on a card to open this lesson. All names and numbers are made up for practice.

More cards: Ravi Sir's Cards.

6. Frequently asked questions

How do I compare two loans in Excel?

Put each loan in its own column, calculate EMI with PMT, then total interest = EMI × months − loan, add the processing fee and compare the total cost.

Is the lowest interest rate always the cheapest loan?

No. A high fee or a longer tenure can make a low-rate loan cost more. In this example the 9.99% offer is not the cheapest.

What is the EMI on ₹5 lakh at 10.5% for 5 years?

₹10,746.95 a month, with total interest of ₹1,44,817.

How do I include the processing fee?

Fee in rupees = loan × fee %. Add it to the total interest to get the total cost.

What EMI is affordable?

That depends on your other expenses. Type your own limit in B17; the sheet then flags offers above it.

7. Quick quiz

Ten questions on this page. Sign in to save your score.